Riviere de Galets Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s shaping up at Riviere de Galets (Réunion). This is a reef and point break, fairly consistent, exposed to a SW swell – and it’s an intermediate’s wave. The water’s sitting at 77°, a touch warmer than normal for this time of year.

Right now, from Sunday 5 July, there’s a bit of swell rolling in – 5ft from the SW, with a very long 16-second period. That’s proper groundswell energy, 1925 (moderate to strong). But the wind is light onshore from the south at 6 mph, so it’s not clean. The score is low – it’s a so-so start with questionable tide conditions. We kick off with a fairly average offering.

Monday 6 July sees a bump in size: 7ft SW in the morning, dropping to 6ft in the afternoon, but the wind cranks up – 16 to 19 mph from the SSE and S, strong onshore. That’s blown-out, poor conditions. Nothing doing.

Tuesday 7 July the swell jumps to 10ft from the SSE in the morning, period dropping to 8 seconds – short-period, lumpy – and a fresh 22 mph cross-onshore wind. The combined energy is 2506 (strong). The afternoon’s the same story, 8ft S swell with a 12-second period, but still windy and messy. Not surfable.

Wednesday 8 July keeps the 8ft swell from the S and SSE, periods around 10 seconds, with fresh 19 mph cross-shore winds and lumpy cross-chop. Marginal at best. Same on Thursday 9 July – 10ft and 8ft swells from the ESE, 9-second period, cross-shore winds of 16–19 mph. The morning actually gets a high score (11) because the wind and tide are favourable, but that swell is too big for this break – over 8ft is expert territory only, and there’s a cross-shore wind. So it’s a miss.

From Friday 10 July through to Sunday 12 July, the swell backs off and swings back to SW. Friday morning sees 4ft from the SE, period 9 seconds, cross-shore breeze – weak energy at 718. By Saturday 11 July, a long-period SW groundswell (15–16 seconds) builds to 5ft then 6ft, with moderate cross-shore wind – still marginal, energy climbing to 1523 then 2211. Sunday 12 July morning is the standout for the first week: a 8ft SW swell, 15-second period, and a light cross-offshore breeze from the ENE at 9 mph. That’s clean, with strong wave energy at 2978. The afternoon stays 8ft SW with a 15-second period but the wind swings cross-shore again – still a decent window, but the morning is your pick. Crowds are possible here.

After that, from Monday 13 July into the second week, conditions get messy. Winds go cross-onshore or cross, with fresh breezes and choppy seas. Swell hangs around 5ft to 7ft from the SW with periods of 13–16 seconds, but the wind keeps it from coming together. Tuesday 14 July, Wednesday 15 July, and Thursday 16 July all have marginal or poor surf. The energy varies from 1017 to 1728, but the wind is always a problem.

The next real potential shows up on Sunday 19 July afternoon – a 6ft SSW swell with a 14-second period, moderate cross-onshore wind – still not a clean session. But then Monday 20 July is the big one: an 12ft SSW groundswell with a very long 17-second period, and light easterly winds (9 mph) – cross-offshore in the afternoon. The combined energy is massive: 8125 in the morning, 5810 in the afternoon. That’s powerful. But, and it’s a big but, over 8ft this is strictly for experts. The wave will be pushing hard, and at a reef and point, that long-period swell should wrap nicely – but it’ll be a heavy paddle and serious commitment. The morning is clean with gentle cross-shore breeze; the afternoon is cleaner with cross-offshore. This is days away (20 July), so promising but less certain. If you’re an expert, watch this window closely.

Overall, the first week is rough – only Sunday 12 July morning offers a clean, solid session. The second week has Monday 20 July as the standout if you’ve got the skills. In between, there’s a lot of lumpy, blown-out days. The setup here often gets messy with this wind pattern, so don’t be surprised by the blank runs.

Rusty.

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